A History of English Language

A history of the english language 84
68. The Scandinavian Invasions of England.
In the Scandinavian attacks upon England three well-marked stages can be distinguished.
The first is the period of early raids, beginning according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
in 787 and continuing with some intermissions until about 850. The raids of this period
were simply plundering attacks upon towns and monasteries near the coast. Sacred
vessels of gold and silver, jeweled shrines, costly robes, and valuables of all kinds were
carried off, and English people were captured to be made slaves. Noteworthy instances
are the sacking of Lindisfarne and Jarrow in 793 and 794. But with the plundering of
these two famous monasteries the attacks apparently ceased for forty years, until renewed
in 834 along the southern coast and in East Anglia. These early raids were apparently the
work of small isolated bands.
The second stage is the work of large armies and is marked by widespread plundering
in all parts of the country and by extensive settlements. This new development was
inaugurated by the arrival in 850 of a Danish fleet of 350 ships. Their pirate crews
wintered in the isle of Thanet and the following spring captured Canterbury and London
and ravaged the surrounding country. Although defeated by a West Saxon army, they
soon renewed their attacks. In 866 a large Danish army plundered East Anglia and in 867
captured York. In 869 the East Anglian king, Edmund, met a cruel death in resisting the
invaders. The incident made a deep impression on all England, and the memory of his
martyrdom was vividly preserved in English tradition for nearly two centuries. The
eastern part of England was now largely in the hands of the Danes, and they began
turning their attention to Wessex. The assault upon Wessex began shortly before the
accession of King Alfred (871–899). Even the greatness of this greatest of English kings
threatened to prove insufficient to withstand the repeated attacks of the Northmen. After
seven years of resistance, in which temporary victories were invariably succeeded by
fresh defeats, Alfred was forced to take refuge with a small band of personal followers in
the marshes of Somerset. But in this darkest hour for the fortunes of the English, Alfred’s
courage and persistence triumphed. With a fresh levy of men from Somerset, Wiltshire,
and Hampshire, he suddenly attacked the Danish army under Guthrum at Ethandun (now
Edington, in Wiltshire). The result was an overwhelming victory for the English and a
capitulation by the Danes (878).
The Treaty of Wedmore (near Glastonbury), which was signed by Alfred and Guthrum
the same year, marks the culmination of the second stage in the Danish invasions.
Wessex was saved. The Danes withdrew from Alfred’s territory. But they were not
compelled to leave England. The treaty merely defined the line, running roughly from
Chester to London, to the east of which the foreigners were henceforth to remain. This
territory was to be subject to Danish law and is hence known as the Danelaw. In addition
the Danes agreed to accept Christianity, and Guthrum was baptized. This last provision
was important. It might secure the better observance of the treaty, and, what was more
important, it would help to pave the way for the ultimate fusion of the two groups.
The third stage of the Scandinavian incursions covers the period of political
adjustment and assimilation from 878 to 1042. The Treaty of Wedmore did not put an
end to Alfred’s troubles. Guthrum was inclined to break faith, and there were fresh